Johnson Beharry donates Victoria Cross at Forceselect Foundation dinner to help military veterans

Feb. 24, 2012 - PRLog -- Military hero Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry donated one of his Victoria Cross medals to the ForceSelect Foundation to raise funds to help veterans and their families at the ForceSelect Foundation Veterans Dinner in central London this week.

L/Cpl Beharry was awarded the military's highest decoration by the Queen in 2005 after twice braving intense machine gun and rocket-propelled-grenade fire to save the lives of dozens of colleagues.

He told the stunned audience that he wanted to help those who were less fortunate than himself, despite suffering horrendous injuries including severe shrapnel injuries to his face and brain when a grenade exploded just six inches from his head.

L/Cpl Beharry has previously expressed his outrage that veterans are treated by the NHS rather than getting the specialist care they require on return from tours of duty and called on the government to provide more support.

But after handing his V.C. to a philanthropist who paid £12,000 for it, he said: “I was seriously injured and I know what it’s like to be lying in a hospital bed and I appreciated having the help. When you think about the people who can't walk again, who is going to look after their families? I may be in that position someday.

“I want guys to know that there are people thinking about their wellbeing. They rely on all of us to look after them. Without them I would not have had a V.C. today so it's only fair I shared it with them.”

L/Cpl Beharry, the first living recipient of the Victoria Cross in more than 30 years, is planning on giving an official citation to the successful bidder, who wishes to remain anonymous.

The second annual ForceSelect Foundation Veterans Dinner was a huge success with thousands raised to help smaller military charities across the UK.

The ForceSelect Foundation, which is led by former Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Mike Jackson, raises funds from charity initiatives, corporate and individual donations and a percentage of the profits from leading recruitment consultancy and sister company, ForceSelect to support smaller military charities that are struggling for funding.

ForceSelect Foundation founder Hugh Andrée added: “The ForceSelect Foundation is honoured that Johnson Beharry chose our event to make such an incredibly generous donation to help military veterans. None of us knew about his plan and it just shows how passionately he feels about helping others who have had their lives devastated through injuries while serving their country.”

The ForceSelect Foundation will pool all raised funds and encourage applications from smaller service charities. Twice a year the trustees will sit to consider the applications and award grants accordingly.

It will look to build strong links with the charities and encourage subsequent bids if the awards have fulfilled their original aims. For more information or to donate, please visit www.forceselect.org .

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NOTES TO EDITORS

The ForceSelect Foundation is the brainchild of former army officer Hugh Andrée who, after setting up ForceSelect, a recruitment agency finding employment for service leavers, realised that there was a need to put something back into the charities who do so much for our ex-servicemen and women.

Head of the trustees is former Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Mike Jackson and other Trustees include Dame Kelly Holmes MBE, Rebekah Brooks, Sir John Rose and Stephen Morris.

The Foundation's aim is to support smaller service charities at a time when they are finding survival in the current economic situation incredibly difficult. There are service charities helping veterans from the Second World War through to the current conflict in Afghanistan and many need external assistance to continue their wonderful work.

Funds are raised in a number of ways. Leading recruitment consultancy ForceSelect is donating a percentage of its profits to the ForceSelect Foundation while corporate and individual donations and fundraising activities will also contribute towards the Foundation’s fund. This money will be pooled and smaller service charities will be invited to make applications for grants.

The ForceSelect Foundation Board of Trustees will meet twice a year to decide who to donate to.

If you wish to donate, please visit: www.forceselect.org

ForceSelect was set up in 2009 by former Army Officer Hugh Andrée to provide military service leavers – currently estimated to be around 22,000 each year – with the best and most appropriate career opportunities within UK businesses.

ForceSelect believes that Armed Forces leavers are efficient, reliable, disciplined, and self-motivated candidates who can contribute positively to Britain’s society and workforce.

All ForceSelect staff have served in the military including Head of Recruitment Stuart Edwards; Director, best-selling author and SAS hero Andy McNab DCM MM; and Non-Executive Director and former Chief of General Staff General Sir Michael Jackson GCB CBE DSO DL.

ForceSelect has partnership deals with companies including McDonald’s, UPS and Unite. It is keen to sign up with a wide range of large and small businesses across the UK across all business sectors.

ForceSelect is implementing a mentoring and support programme to provide advice and guidance to individuals having left the Armed Forces, enabling a seamless transition from service life into civilian employment. This mentoring will be offered to every service leaver placed in a new job and will cover areas such as accommodation, financial matters, medical matters and the different culture of civilian life.

As part of a wider corporate responsibility, the ForceSelect Foundation has also been established to contribute towards service charities each year. ForceSelect will contribute a proportion of its profits to the Foundation as well as organising a range of fundraising activities.

For more information, please visit www.forceselect.com    
                                          
For ForceSelect media inquiries, please contact:
David Alexander, Calacus PR, david.alexander@calacus.com +44 (0) 7802 412424 OR
Hannah Slater, Calacus PR, hannah.slater@calacus.com +44 (0) 7731 769269

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Calacus PR was established in 2007 by David Alexander, a former national and international sports journalist. Calacus has expertise in international sports campaigns, media relations, consumer and corporate consultancy and athlete representation.